8-Year-Old Utah Boy Fatally Shoots Himself with Gun Found in Mother’s Car

Police say an 8-year-old boy killed himself with a gun he found in their car while his mother was in a Utah convenience store.

Monday just before 8 p.m., there was a shooting in the parking lot of a Maverick gas station in Lehi, which is about 30 miles south of Salt Lake City. Jeanteil Livingston from the Lehi City Police Department told KSL-TV of Salt Lake City that the shooting happened.

The child was taken to the hospital in very bad shape and then flown to a different hospital. Police said he died Tuesday morning from his wounds.

The police said the killing looked like it was “unintentional and self-inflicted,” according to the Associated Press. The gun was in the car, hidden under a seat.

An Associated Press report says that the shooting happened less than two weeks after a 5-year-old boy in Utah killed himself by mistake with a gun he found in his parent’s bedroom. They haven’t been charged with anything.

The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence says that Utah does not have any rules that punish adults for leaving a gun unattended.

The boy’s family said in a statement that others should be careful, according to The Associated Press.

“This heartbreaking incident has taught us difficult lessons, and we deeply regret that it unfolded this way,” a statement from the “Wilson and Hunsaker families” stated. “Our hearts are shattered, and we hope that our family’s loss serves as a poignant reminder of how quickly life can change.”

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